Abstract
Based on a corpus of spontaneous speech production of bilingual speakers, the present paper investigates the properties of negation in Brazilian Hunsrückisch. Focussing on negation is interesting from a linguistic perspective because this linguistic phenomenon is very differently realized in the two contact varieties involved (German variety, Brazilian Portuguese (BP)). We focus on the position of the negation marker vis-á-vis the finite verb and direct object and on the question whether two negation words can occur within one and the same sentence without turning it into an affirmative proposition (Negative Concord). The aim of our analysis is to identify potential areas of contact-induced language change and cross-linguistic influence. The results show that negation is a very stable phenomenon in Hunsrückisch and follows German word order patterns. This stability is a result of the constant use of the dialect. Nevertheless, we find phenomena of Negative Concord which are similar to BP but not grammatical in Standard German. In contrast to BP, Negative Concord with negated objects is not a categorical but a variable phenomenon which also exists or existed in other German dialects.
Keywords:
bilingual speakers; Hunsrückish; language contact; negation